


Watching the Sunset

by Karri



Category: Le Petit Prince | The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Genre: Friendship/Love, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-02
Updated: 2015-08-02
Packaged: 2018-04-12 14:28:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4482809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karri/pseuds/Karri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The prince and the pilot meet again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Watching the Sunset

I had crashed again. Unlike North Africa, this was not the sort from which one walked away, as this time my plane had succumbed to a hail of Luftwaffe bullets.

That grim reality, and awareness of where I had been prior to making the acquaintance of the Focke-Wolf, combined to befuddle my senses. I had been flying over the Mediterranean, on my way to the Rhone Valley, but not yet over land. Thus, it did not seem possible that I now sat in a field of wild flowers nestled between two tiny, dormant volcanoes.

My flight had been at night; yet bright daylight flooded my being with warmth that I would have better appreciated had I not longed so deeply for the twinkling laughter of the stars at this moment. I have grown accustomed to seeking the stars on those occasions when I am actually seeking solace. I could think of little else that I needed now, when my mind could make so little sense of my current situation.

So I remembered, instead, the tinkling laughter of that dear child I had met when last I had crashed - nine years ago to the day, I realized abruptly, and marveling at the coincidence. I wondered, briefly, if he would appear again and what he would think of me now if he did? Would he know how unhappy I had become? Would he shake his head in disapproval that I had turned to alcohol to drown my sorrow, only to stumble into that vicious cycle of drink and sadness that he had so astutely observed during his travels among the stars. Or, would he simply request another sheep, or perhaps the leather strap that I had forgotten to draw that would have made useful the harness I had drawn for his sheep.

That thought led to another, and I soon found myself wondering about the rose plant he had loved so much. Had it survived his absence? If so, had it learned to better appreciate him upon his return? Had it hence been eaten by the sheep. Or, did it still grow and flourish out there upon its star?

"You may see for yourself."

I started at the sound of the bright, cheerful voice and raised my eyes in search of its owner. I smiled with genuine delight when my gaze found him.

"You are here!" I announced, happy to remark on the obvious in my joy. "My heart hoped for it, but my mind did not truly expect it."

"I am not," the little Prince replied. " _You_ are _here_."

I frowned, puzzled, as I so often was by his cryptic statements, but he did not leave me waiting long for clarification.

"I had not expected to be left waiting so long for you arrival, but I do not mind. For now that you have come at last, I shall never be lonely again!" he declared with a grin. Bending slightly, he reached for my hand, which I gave him freely and then allowed him to pull me to my feet. "Come, I have our chairs already, so that we may watch our first sunset together."

I nodded my willingness to follow where he led, wondering aloud as we walked, "Perhaps, in celebration of my arrival, we may move our chairs afterwards and enjoy several more sunsets this night?"

**Author's Note:**

> written as a gift for/tribute to my father, who was in the process of shuffling off this mortal coil to begin his own journey among the stars. It is a sequel of sorts to the Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. My father taught me at an early age to appreciate the little Prince's wisdom; thus, though I do not live it as well as I would like, it is with me always.


End file.
